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Historic Whitehead house to be demolished

FAIRFIELD -- Despite heroic efforts in trying to save the former house built by aviation pioneer Gustave Whitehead, the tiny bungalow on 184 Alvin St. could be razed as early as Monday morning.

Whitehead supporters were hoping to salvage the building -- as a reminder of the man who may well have been the first to fly a powered aircraft. They were also hoping it could be proved that the house was 100 years old, thus imposing a 60-day demolition delay under town ordinance. But First Selectman Michael Tetreau announced Friday the home appears to be less than a century old.

"We know that the Alvin Street property ... was owned by the Whiteheads on May 27, 1914," Tetreau said. "The developer filed his permit application on April 10, 2014, and because the difference between these two dates is less than 100 years, the house does not qualify for the delay in demolition," he said in a written statement.

He added: "The town has no choice but to follow building regulations and issue the permit" for demolition.

Tetreau said that there is proof a building existed only as far back as Sept. 1, 1915, according to tax records.

However Melanie Marks, a historic research consultant and president of Connecticut House Histories, offered evidence there was a structure at the address on Oct. 2, 1914, the day after the 1914 tax list came out. Records show that the house could have been built as early as May 27, 1914, she said.

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When Stratford developer Gary Tenk filed his demolition permit on April 10, the house may have been just months shy of turning 100 years old.

Tetreau lamented the fact that nothing could be done to save the house.

"The issue is that we don't have the money to move the house, update the house, and we don't have the land to put it on at the moment," he said.

"I hate to see any historic structure" demolished, Marks said. "But because of how our ordinance is written and how ineffective it was in trying to protect this house, there was nothing I could do."